Musical instrument



(No Model.) I 3 Sheets-Sheet, 2. Bu 0. AUTEN.

, MUSICAL INSTRUMENT. v

No; 604,954. Patented May 31,1898.

INVENTOHQ D J! g m ATTORNEYS. I

(No Model 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

B. 0. AUTENQ MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.

No. 04,954. I A Patented May 31,1898.

r I a INVENTOH a A TTOHNE YS.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

BENJAMIN O. AUTEN, OF PRINCEVILLE, ILLINOIS.

MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 604,954, dated May 31, 1898.

Ap li ti filed November 18, 1897. Serial No. 658,939. (No model.)

To all whom-it may concern:

Be it known that I, BENJAMIN C. AUTEN, of Irinceville, in the county of Peoria and State of Illinois, have invented anew andlmproved 5 Musical Instrument, of which the following is a full, clear,and exact description.

The object of the invention is to provide a new and improved musical instrument, more especially designed to enable a person having little or noknowledgc of music to readily play chords, &c., to accompany'a song or chorus singing.

The invention consists of certain parts and details and combinations of the same, as will be fully described hereinafter and then pointed out in-the claims.

Reference is to be had'to the accompanying drawings, formingapart of this specification,

-- -in whichsimilar characters of reference indi cats corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a plan View of the improvement as arranged for a sounding device in the form of a comb andstar-wheels. Fig. 2 is a sectional front elevation of the same on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a transverse section of the same on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig.4 is a sectional plan view of the improve ment. Fig. 5 is a transverse section of the improvement arranged for a stringed instrugo ment. Fig. 6 is a similar view of the same with parts in a different position. Fig. 7 is a 'plan view of a modified form of the improvement with parts broken out, and Fig. 8 is a sectional elevation of the same entire line 8.8 of Fig. 7.

The improved musical instrument illus-' trated in Figs. 1 to at is mounted in a suitably-constructed box A, containing a sounding deviceli in the form. of a comb actuated by stanwhccls C in the usual manner for sounding'the teeth of the comb. In front of the sounding device are arranged guideways D, extending longitudinally and engaged by a suitable carriage E, adapted to be moved on the said guideways by the operator, according to the music to be played, and as hereinafter more fully described.

The carriage E supports on its top a plate F, formed witlrapertures F, through which project from below the fingerpieces or heads G, of keys G, fulcrnmed at G in the carriage E, the lower ends of the said keys being pivotally connected with actuating devices II, made in the form of rods extending transversely and guided in the carriage E to engage with their free ends the star-wheels C, so that when a fingerpiece or head G is pressed the key G imparts movement to the said actuating devices II to turn the cone spending star-wheel so asto sound the corresponding tongue of the comb B.

As illustrated in Fig. 1, the keys G are so arranged relatively to the. plate F that the finger-pieces or heads G are arranged in rows indicating five chords, the ordinary chromatic and a tonic major scale. It will be seen that the keys are also arranged in transverse rows; so that one or a number of keys connect with the same star-wheel at one time by their cor responding ac'tdating devices II,- and when the carriage E is shifted longitudinally the said actuating devices move in register with different teeth on the comb, so that the in strument can be set to any key or to obtain a certain desired chord in a different key.

Nowin order to enable the operator to conveniently move the carriage E and the keys G and actuating device II, I provide the following device: A transverse shaft I is. journaled in suitable hearings in the box A and is provided at one outer end with a handwheel I for conveniently turnin g the said shaft. On the shaft I within the carriage E is secured a gear-wheel I in mesh with a longitudinally-extending rack 1 secured to the bottom of the said carriage, so that when the shaft I is turned the gear-wheel I will impart a sliding motion to the'rack I and to the carriage E and its contents either to the right or to the left, according to the direction in which the wheel I is turned.

In order to indicate the key instrument is set by shifting the carriage E, I provide the shaft I with a ratchet-wheel J, engaged by a spring-pressed pawl J, which serves as a click and is attached to the box A.

at which the loo tance the carriage is shifted either to the right or to the left for setting the instrument to a desired key.

In order to play the instrument, I prefer to employ a wheel adapted to run in a longitudinal direction over the corresponding row of heads orfinger-pieces G topress the said finger-pieees, and thereby actuate the keys for sounding the corresponding teeth on the comb B. It desired, the finger-pieces may also be played by hand or by suitable mechanical means.

It is evident that by the arrangement de scribed a playerhavin g but little or no kn owl edge of music can readily execute chords to accompany a song or chorus singing, and also execute scales to obtain musical knowledge.

From the foregoing it is evident that the arrangement described can be readily applied to sounding devices of various construction-- for instance,to stringed instruments-41s illus trated in Figs; 5 and 6, in which the strings B to be sounded are stretched over a sounding-bridge B, and the said strings are sounded by spring-hammers 0, adapted to be actuated by actuating devices I l, connected with keys G having their heads or finger-pieces G extending through apertures at the top of the plate F As shown, the actuating device consists of a rod connecting each key with a lever H carrying a spring-pressed jack I1 adapted to engage a shoulder C on the hammer C, so

that when the key is pressed the jack H first moves the spring-pressed hammer O upward and then drops it suddenly to allow the felted head of the hammer to strike and sound the corresponding string B.

In the arrangement shown in Figs. 7.and 8 each star-wheel is best engaged by a single actuating-rod I1 and the several keys G for the same rod H and star-wheel C are secured to a single rock-shaft G, fulcrumed in the carriage E, it being understood that such shaft G is provided with a single arm G for connection with the corresponding rod II, and each shaft is pressed on by a spring G to hold the keys for the same shaft normally in an uppermost positionthat is, with their finger-pieces G above the top surface of the plate F The carriage E is mounted to slide parallel to the comb B and star-wheel 0 on suitable guideways D, and the carriage is shifted by a mechanism similar to the one above described in reference to Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 4, so that further description of the same is not deemed necessary. 7

It is understood that when any one of the finger-pieces G9 in the same row is pressed the shaft G6 is rocked and the remaining finger-pieces in the same row move downward below the surface of the plate F with the one pressed; but only one star-wheel is actuated by the corresponding rod H".

ft is further evident that by the arrangement described a performer can readily play a melody on the scale and the necessary accompaniment by pressing the keys for the corresponding chords, and as the instrument can be set to any desired key it is evident that almost any desired piece of music can be executed.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. A musical instrument, comprising fixed sounding devices, actuating devices for the same, keys for manipulating the said actuating devices, a slidable carriage containing the said keys and the said actuating devices, and a top plate for the said carriage, and having apertures through which project the heads of the said keys, the said apertures being arranged in rows indicating chords and scales, substantially as shown and described.

2. A musical instrument, comprising fixed sounding devices, actuating devices for the same, keys for manipulating the said actuating devices, a slidable carriage containing the said keys and the said actuating devices, a

top plate for the said carriage, and having apertures through which project the heads of the said keys, the said apertures being arranged in rows indicating chords and scales, and means for shifting the said carriage to set the instrument to any desired key, as set forth.

3. A musical instrument provided with a slidable carriage, keys 'fulcrumed on the carriage and having their finger-pieces or heads arranged in rowsindicatin g chords and scales, actuating devices pivotally connected with the said keys, and fixed sounding devices, substantially as described. r i

4. A musical instrument, comprising a box,

tuating devices for the same, keys for manipulating the said actuating devices, a carriage mounted to slide and containing thesaid keys and the said actuating devices, a top vided with a gear-wheel in mesh with a rack on the carriage, a ratchet-wheel on the said shaft, and a spring-pressed pawl attached to the box and engaging the ratchet-wheel,substantially as set forth. r

v sounding devices contained in said box, 210- 5. Amusicalinstrument,comprisingsound actuating devices, the said keys'being f-ulcrumed in the carriage and pivotally c011 nected at their lower ends with the said aetuating devices, substantially as shown and described.

BENJA IN churns". 

